


Her Space Holiday

by pressdbtwnpages



Category: Firefly
Genre: Christmas, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-24
Updated: 2011-12-24
Packaged: 2017-11-06 21:25:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/423400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pressdbtwnpages/pseuds/pressdbtwnpages
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Ain't no seasons in space.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Her Space Holiday

**Author's Note:**

> For [](http://howlinchickhowl.livejournal.com/profile)[**howlinchickhowl**](http://howlinchickhowl.livejournal.com/) for advent 2011.

“On Earth-that-Was,” River recited dreamily over third meal one day, “the nations celebrated a winter holiday.”

“Ain’t no seasons in space,” Mal pointed out mildly.

“...They strung up lights outside their homes and decorated the insides with trees and special plants...”

“What kinda holiday was this? Backwards Day?” Jayne grumped, but Mal could tell he was intrigued.

“...they sang songs and made special foods and gave each other gifts...”

“We could do that,” Kaylee said, wide-eyed. “Couldn’t we do that Cap’n?”

Even on the best of days it was hard to turn Kaylee down. It had been a long time since Serenity had seen the best of days, and when River turned to him, dark eyes hopeful, Mal caved. After Miranda, after everything Mal’s crew had been through lately, they needed this.

“Well, I reckon we’re about a day out from Persephone?”

River nodded confirmation of their location.

“Might as well put down for supplies.”

Kaylee shrieked and hugged him while River grinned wide and bright in an expression that mirrored her brother’s bright beam. Jayne pretended to ignore the scene, speculatively sharpening his knife, but he was in. Even some of Zoe’s grief seemed to ease in that moment, at the idea of a project.

*

“So,” Mal asked River as they walked arm-in-arm through a Persephone junkyard, “what do we need?”

“Lights. Lots of lights. And one of those,” River pointed.

“This?” Mal picked up a rusty tin can curiously.

“Feng le*,” River chided. “That one.”

She pointed again.

Mal picked up the shiny metal ring that had once been part of a warp transfunctioner.

“This?” he asked dubiously. The old can had more value.

“Need is not a factor where n equals good will.”

It had taken time, but Mal had gotten used to River’s less lucid moments. “So, this?”

“That,” River confirmed.”

“Anything else?”

“More lights.”

“Alright, then. Jayne and Kaylee are gettin’ your special foods and Simon and Zoe are getting ...plants. So that just leaves-”

“Truth can only be found by following the guiding star.”

Mal blinked at River. “I was going to say ‘presents.””

“That’s what I did say,” River insisted, tugging Mal after her to pay for their treasures before they headed to the market to pick out gifts for their friends.

*

River peeked into the bridge and, when she saw that Mal was there, scowled.

“I told you we needed more lights.”

“The dining area is full of lights. The cargo bay is full of lights. Correct me if I’m wrong but your bunk is also full of lights, is it not?”

The bridge - Mal’s place of refuge from holiday preparations - was bare of lights and River gestured at it.

“Lights would be too distracting up here,” Mal told her. Hell, it was probably true. “Did you really come up here to scold me about lights?”

“Aurora chases Apollo over tundras of spice.” River shook herself. “No. Here.”

She took two steps into the room and dropped something small and round into Mal’s hand.

It was hard and brown and smelled like it could potentially be food. It was hard to tell with River, though.

“What is it?”

“On Earth-that-Was they called them Pfeffernusse.”

Mal just stared at her.

“It’s food. Eat it. It’s good.”

The Pfeffernusse crumbled in Mal’s mouth leaving a sweet spicy flavor.

“Eh ith gud,” Mal mumbled around the food.

River nodded her agreement and then slipped away silently.

*

It was just another meal on Serenity but everyone was smiling. Surrounded by scraps of paper and the glow of thousands of tiny lights the crew shared stories of their families unique traditions.

Jayne sharpened his knife with a new whetstone and Kaylee toyed with the colorful new bracelet on her wrist. Simon’s new book had been carefully placed on his bunk to protect it from damage, and Zoe had only glanced quickly inside the envelope Mal had given her before her eyes filled with tears. ‘Thank you,’ she had said and slipped the envelope into a pocket. River had wrapped her colorful scarf around her head and told a silly story about a man called Saint Claws, who sounded like a reaver but wasn’t.

Mal watched them all while rubbing his fingers across the antique compass River had pressed into his hand.

“On Earth-that-Was,” she began, but Mal cut her off.

“I know.”

 

*‘Loopy in the head’ translation from <http://fireflychinese.kevinsullivansite.net/>


End file.
